Though the fundamentals of baseball have changed very little in the past 150 years, the game has seen some dramatic changes on the youth level, including the introduction of pitching machines in some leagues, now dubbed "Machine Pitch" leagues. Instead of young players risking arm injuries by pitching, machines have taken their place on the mound. Machine pitch baseball leagues have tweaked various rules accordingly.
Batting Rules
A batter is allotted a maximum number of pitches per at-bat, hit or no hit. If he reaches this number of pitches (unless the last pitch results in a foul ball), the batter is considered out.
There are no walks.
Foul balls are considered strikes with less than two strikes in the count. If the batter hits a foul tip into the catcher's mitt for a third strike, the batter is considered out.
Throwing the bat after hitting, depending on how many times it has been done on the same team, can result in an automatic out.
All batters must wear protective batting helmets.
All players on each team shall be allowed to bat at least once in the game.
On-Field Rules
Defensively, each team may have up to 10 players in the field.
The pitching machine and any umpire are considered in play, so a batted ball that hits them is considered fair and live.
Base runners may not lead off, and must stay on base until after every pitch.
A team may not score more than five runs in any inning.
Base runners, third-base coaches and first-base coaches must wear protective batting helmets.
Base runners hit by a batted ball are considered out.
A coach or designated adult is responsible for feeding the ball into the pitching machine for each batter.
Every defensive half-inning, any player who was not on the field in that team's previous half-inning must be put onto the field.
Off-Field Rules
If a player does not attend at least one complete practice during the week, a coach may keep the player from playing.
A team may play with as few as seven players. If a team has fewer than seven players, the game will be considered a forfeit
The visiting team bats first.
The umpire has final authority on all calls, and may eject any player from the game.
Any player or players arriving late must be allowed to play and added to the end of the batting order.
No altered bats or softball bats are allowed. No bats larger than 2 1/4 inches in diameter are allowed.
Member Comments